Book It With CollectorTBNL

One of the trades I did in Tuesday with the free shipping was for about 100 cards each way. Not the biggest I did over the month, but enough that the free shipping saved the $10 or so, a nice trade for just to cost of cards going...oh, and bookmarks? 

I didn't have any of these before, but here we have some bookmarks from 1997 and 2003 "Hit The Books" series. Not all of them, and not something I would be going out of the way to collect, but "card" enough, to just put into my binders accordingly. They have an English, and a French side. Like the message though - using sports to try and help encourage reading - definitely a good promotion.

The trade did involve a bunch of actual cards too, so let's take a look at what those include...

The 1986 Fleer sticker is a new one for me, though a bunch of the trade was for Jays which may not be new to my collection, like the 1987 TOpps ones here, and most of the next scan or two as well...

I have to check on some of the variation sets soon, like the Donruss ones, to see if I have all Jays for the different versions of dots or no dots or one versus two asterisks as I can't be 100% sure I have everyone logged exactly right, and it would be nice to know if I do have them all or need any. Yeah, I am....detailed....like that.

Once we get into the post-2000 cards, pretty much the rest are all new cards for me.

The two cards from 2001 Donruss The Rookies are the full Jays entourage from that set, so all done there, and the 2008 Topps cards are the Jays team set, which I still need more to complete.

Nate's Warming In The Pen is a one and done Jays insert set, as is Franchise Futures insert right below it.

As there are 100 parallels in every set these days, new versions in various refractor / throwback / shiny / shaped / colourful cards from newer Topps sets. I like them, but there is just such an abundance, it takes away from being really special.

We end with some hockey cards as well, with the MVP Potvin and Pinnacle Mint Silver Team Alyn cards being the new from the bunch.

A satisfying trade, and hopefully a decent read. If you didn't finish, can always bookmark it!

Raw vs Smackdown

 Always love a good trade that includes a bunch of wrestling cards that are new to me. These cards come from TCDB member shimano, across the pond as it were.

We have a single 1982 Topps baseball set addition, but it's all about the 2002 Fleer WWE Raw vs. SMackdown cards otherwise. I didn't have any of these until this trade.

I may not be a fan of the silver script autographs printed on like MVP sets, and the font used for the name on the card can make it hard for me to read, but the photography is pretty good!

I don't mind the photoshoot pic for the announcers. I guess probably better than a photo of them just sitting at the desk.

Rico - there's a guy I haven't thought about in a while. I remember hearing the story about OVW tapes of him being used to decide whether to have him called up to WWE, and then Cena being in them and becoming the attention he needed to get him started on his way out of OVW.

Not sure why the ladies have a different design than being Raw or Smackdown, but ok....

Terri was always an interesting one - decent manager, but not great in the ring. I do wonder if she did the wrestling because she wanted to, or really her enjoyment came with being a manager. Don't have many good managers these days - though Paul Hayman is amazing as one, he does have a slightly different physique than Terri....

Hockey D!

McDonalds hockey cards are always a fun pull from a lot of cards, and that's what we have from the COVID lot today... 

Works out that most of the cards are here in duplicate, so I can show you the front and back of the cards at the same time - including their Frenchy goodness!

I have the set almost done, so it was just about Dave as far as keepers for me, and we have the two copies of Ellett to add to the couple I already have.

The uniforms are a bit on the ugly side as far as my taste goes, but I still like them better when everyone has a "team" jersey. I would like the front edged black border to have gone all the way around as my eye keeps going to the fact it isn't on the left edge of the cards at all.

Love seeing these cards as it reminds me of my youth, and of Jagr's fabulous mullet! Man kept with it long after it was "cool".

Didn't get a complete set out of it, but pretty close, so if anyone wants a solid starter - let me know!

Remembering '72

 I may have not been around for the Summit Series when it happened, but was around when this set same out in 1991 or so, commemorating the event.

Being international focused, this isn't in my wheelhouse for collecting, but is still a cool set to see pop up. I mean, you have some great stars in it - both for Canada and for Russia. My international hockey memories as a child are mostly of the dominance of Canada on the World Junior stage, so seeing and hearing about what the Summit Series was so different. A series Canada was supposed to cake walk to many, but finding that Russia had many high caliber players, and ended up in a dogfight to save face, which they did.

There have been many interviews and documentaries on the series made, and if you don't know it well, check any of them out - even for American hockey fans, it's an interesting hockey historical event and explains a lot about hockey on an international scale, in the 70s, and as it led into the 80s.

As for the cards and the set, about 40 cards here in total, all on TCDB if anyone is interest.

Not Contending

 COVID lot cards today, and we are in the 2010-11 Playoff Contenders set - so let's seee if we have anything of interest.

I like that the seat numbering on the fronts actually have a meaning to them with the player number, number of seasons, and position highlighted. The franchise year established isn't too shabby either. The fact this takes up half the card really reduces the photo space and makes them a little more static in look, and not sure the team name in the bottom left is overly needed with the logo on the front as well, but so be it.

The backs still look odd with the lack of stats - but different can be okay. I do have problem with some of the colour combos - green on black is not easy to read, for example.

A shame there isn't anything for me to keep in the cards today, but it isn't a bad set - just not in my likes for collecting. Anyone out there interested in a start?

Giving Thanks

 Sure, it may seem late to give thanks - or early if you are in the US (Canada celebrates in October), but getting together with my family this year actually ended up with some cards coming into my possession. Well, cards and stickers.

My brother recently moved out of my mom's place, and as she was cleaning up, came across a couple card related items of mine that we didn't realize she still had.

A bit big for the scanner, but one of the sticker albums I collected in as a kid. This one was actually almost complete to, so since it is 5 stickers short, I will be getting those and putting them in to complete it. Better 33 years later than never!

The pages are definitely yellowed and wavy, but this one is one I hadn't put a pen mark in at all which surprises me a bit as I liked to write in them about the stats. I didn't do too bad a job getting the stickers in place either - just a couple which were a little off, so good there.

The other item, is another copy of something I already have...

It is the complete 36 card set, the corrected version (so not the 2 error card versions from the earlier releases), for the 1993 Toronto Blue Jays Greatest Moments set. I have a bunch of the cards in a number of copies, but I'll take another!

Not something I expected to get from Thanksgiving, but then again, my sister came across 50 or so stuffies that my daughter brought home, so I wasn't the only one getting something from the gathering this year!

Shaw Racing Box Trade

 Just as it says, TCDB member Shaw Racing and I did a box trade - about 800 cards going each way, taking advantage of Canada Post October free shipping Tuesdays. I would normally show all the cards over a few days, but the majority of the trade was me getting rid of dupes and traders in exchange for dupe Jays from 1986-1992 period, so rather than show those, will show the other cards instead - some set help, a few new Jays, a few error cards. It was good for also picking up some Bruins for a friend.

I picked up a number of 1988 Score base cards to help with that set, just because he had a bunch and I need a bunch - still only about 2/3 of the way on the set, but further than I was before the trade.

I had grabbed a few Bruins cards for a friend, and a couple for myself for other set build projects as seen above.

I did end up with some new Jays cards, like the those from a few 80s team sets, as well as a few Donruss and Leaf cards I needed. I need to look at my 1987 DOnruss cards to see if I have all the different variations covered.

Believe it or not, I actually need a last Bowman Jay or two to finish the team set. Been a while looking for them because I have been working on the set as a whole too.

Not many Leaf cards, but a few including a nice Kraft card - always like getting those, and wish I had the ones I remember getting in the early 90s as a kid. Last up, some error cards I need to check and make sure are already in my error binder...

About 700 more cards that are all now in my Jays collection, and for a shipping price of zero - love being able to make such a large trade with Shaw Racing - much appreciated!